Monument to Bashkir soldiers-liberators will be established in Netherlands

UFA, 1 August 2017. /Bashinform News Agency, Leila Aralbaeva/. In the Netherlands, a monument will be erected to the Bashkir warriors, who liberated the country from Napoleon's army in 1813-1814. According to TASS, the monument will be installed on the banks of the river IJssel in the province of Gelderland. A grand opening is scheduled for September 9 in the framework of the events dedicated to the 200th anniversary of the liberation of the Netherlands from the Napoleonic occupation. In memory of the liberation, one of the two monuments represents a Bashkir horseman, and the other - the Russian general, Count Alexander von Benckendorff.

"It was here more than 200 years ago where the Bashkir warriors under the leadership of General Alexander Benckendorff forced the river, built a pontoon bridge from boats, and then liberated several nearby cities and reached Amsterdam," says the author of the monumental composition.

The sculptor, Corresponding Member of the Russian Academy of Arts, Honored Artist of the Russian Federation Alexander Taratynov works under the monument. The sculptor noted that, in fact, thanks to the efforts of the Russian army, the Netherlands had been liberated and a monarchy had been established. The monument is created on the initiative of the Dutch side.